Ben Glassman stepping down as U.S. Attorney

Marc Kovac The Columbus Dispatch

Thursday

Oct 31, 2019 at 11:01 AMOct 31, 2019 at 4:17 PM

Ben Glassman is stepping down as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio. He's leaving with a lengthy list of legal accomplishments, including international crackdowns on drug dealers and the dismantling of a violent transnational gang's central Ohio operations.

One of Benjamin C. Glassman’s first orders of business after becoming an assistant U.S. Attorney 14 years ago was to sort out evidence collected against a now-notorious painkiller provider in southeastern Ohio.

Dr. Paul Volkman was the top physician purchaser of addictive opioids in the country, selling millions of pills for cash "without any legitimate medical purpose" from locations in southeastern Ohio, according to court documents. He was convicted following a 2011 jury trial and sentenced for multiple life sentences.

The high-profile case marked Glassman’s introduction to the work of federal prosecutors in Ohio’s Southern District, and cracking down on illicit drug activities has been an ongoing issue during his three years as U.S. Attorney.

"Here in the Southern District of Ohio, we seek to attack sources of the supply of illegal narcotics at all levels — by prescription pad to street sale to regional distribution networks to ‘darknet’ sales to Mexican cartels all the way to… the people who supply those cartels," he said. "No one involved in sending illicit drugs into Ohio is safe from the reach of federal authorities."

On Friday, Glassman will officially step down from his post, making way for newly named U.S. Attorney David M. DeVillers, who was appointed by President Donald Trump to serve as lead federal prosecutor over 48 Ohio counties.

DeVillers is a longtime assistant U.S. Attorney and former assistant Franklin County prosecutor — and Glassman’s friend.

The president "has picked a fantastic prosecutor who has been an absolute superstar," Glassman said. "I think he’s going to be fantastic."

DeVillers, who will take his oath on Friday, praised Glassman for his work in the office, his knowledge of appellate and case law issues, and his encouragement, allowing Assistant U.S. Attorneys to pursue cases against violent criminals and drug traffickers, always acting in the interest of the Southern District.

"He’s leaving with a lot of respect," DeVillers said.

Glassman, 44 and from the Cincinnati area, was hired as an assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio in 2005 and has held the top post there since 2016. There’s a lengthy list of notable cases handled by the office under his leadership, ranging from hate crimes and fair housing violations to violent crimes and espionage.

There was the indictment of a Chinese official accused of attempting to steal trade secrets from aerospace and aviation companies. Glassman said Yanjun Xu's arrest marked the first time a Chinese intelligence officer has been successfully apprehended overseas and extradited to the United States for trial.

Glassman also pointed to the case of Laith Waleed Alebbini, who was sentenced 15 years in prison and faces deportation afterward for attempting to provide material support to terrorists overseas. It was one of the first international terrorism cases to go to trial in the state.

Additionally, Southern District prosecutors have been actively countering violent gang activity, prosecuting members of the Short North Posse, Crips and MS-13 in central Ohio. Many individuals involved are behind bars or facing lengthy prison sentences under indictments for racketeering, a somewhat novel legal approach in gang cases, with charges against multiple members for a wider scope of illegal activities rather than focusing on individual criminal acts.

With the violent, transnational MS-13 gang, for example, more than 20 members were charged locally, and most have pleaded guilty, including the leader, who was recently sentenced to life in prison without parole.

"I felt comfortable saying we have completely dismantled the MS-13 organization in Ohio," Glassman said. "That doesn’t mean that the gang might not try to regroup or try to recruit new people to fill those roles, but the entire organization that existed, based out of Columbus, is gone."

Throughout his time in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, drugs have been an ever-present focus of prosecution. With the help of law enforcement and other groups, federal prosecutors have worked to disrupt suppliers and otherwise hamper the distribution of illegal drugs in the Southern District, whether street-level dealers or pirates hauling drugs in international waters.

In recent days, Glassman announced the indictment of a Guatemalan man who investigators say provided major quantities of cocaine — hundreds of pounds — sold across the country, including supplies traced to Ohio.

Glassman said he believes the efforts have made a difference, citing decreases in overdose statistics.

"I think that the numbers are encouraging," he said. "I don’t think it’s something where we can ever declare victory."

Glassman hopes to remain on staff at the U.S. Attorney's Office for a short time to assist with the DeVillers' transition.

"After that, I don’t have a particular plan yet," he said. "I definitely hope to be back in public service in one form or another — hopefully sooner rather than later."

mkovac@dispatch.com

@OhioCapitalBlog

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